According to wine historians, piquette was a low-alcohol wine made from a second pressing of the harvest — this time of the grape skins, seeds, stems and pulp that remain after the juice has been pressed off for wine at Bartier Bros.
Although linked to France, most European winemaking countries made a version of piquette, usually to be enjoyed by farmhands and vineyard workers. It’s bright, uncomplicated, has a light hit of fizz, and it’s remarkably refreshing . . . in short, it’s the perfect summer drink.
For 2023, Black Sage Bench winery Bartier Bros. has now launched its own versions, Piquette White and Piquette Rosé: delicious, low-alcohol (4.2%) sippers that are sure to become seasonal essentials.
And with one of the largest volumes of piquette created in Canada, the winery has hopes of becoming a sparkling part of every delicious summer adventure.
It wasn’t Michael’s first time making piquette — that was 28 years ago, and it wasn’t on a commercial scale.
Even so, developing the Bartier Bros. piquette protocol took months. The cellar team made 114 separate piquette batches throughout the 2022 vintage.
Seven of them went into the drain. It took 63 winemaker hours in tasting and blending trials, and 5,130 measurements of chemistry parameters to get it exactly right.
The result is two light, delightful thirst quenchers. Piquette White offers a bright stone-fruit palate, while Piquette Rosé boasts orange blossom, cranberry and hints of citrus.
Bartier Bros. has long been known for the quality of all its wines, and fans will not be disappointed with this variation.
The duo of easy-drinking beverages represents great value, and have just the right amount of spritz to make them a refreshing summer staple for beating the heat.
Bartier Bros. Piquette is available to buy at the winery, online, through the wine club and select private liquor stores around the province.
Piquette by the numbers:
- 28 – number of years ago that Michael Bartier first made a piquette. It wasn’t on a commercial scale; he opted to focus instead on winemaking for the next 27 years.
- 114 – the number of separate piquette batches processed throughout the 2022 vintage.
- 7 – batches that went into the drain.
- 47,504 – number of 355 ml cans produced this year.
- 63 – winemaker hours spent in tasting and blending trials
- 5,130 – chemistry parameters measured for all of the separate batches of piquette
- 0 – number of negative reactions from the piquette test market (friends, family, and colleagues)